Experience a local wedding at Kampung Pelegong Homestay in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

Homestays are one of the best ways to experience local life while traveling. In the Philippines, some of my favorite travel experiences were staying with local families in the Cordillera Region and South Cotabato, to name a few. I was surprised to find out that Malaysia has an extensive network of village cooperatives throughout the country that run homestays for both domestic and foreign tourists.

Here are some great reasons why you should experience a homestay in Negeri Sembilan:

SLEEP IN A TRADITIONAL HOUSE

Get a taste of Malay hospitality when staying with a foster family during the homestay program. In my opinion, Kampung Lonek had the most beautiful Malay houses, architecture-wise, among the villages we visited on our trip, as most of them were still made of traditional materials like hardwood.

Play traditional games like coconut bowling and palm frond sledding at Kampung Lonek

LIVE THE RURAL LIFE

At Kampung Lonek, we had our try at some folk games like coconut bowling, balloon throwing and palm frond sledding. But one of the most memorable parts of the trip was handfishing for ikan keli (catfish) in a muddy ditch amidst the rice paddies! We also got to experience rubber tree tapping, bee farming and handicraft making, such as batik painting and making decorative flowers out of rubber tree leaf skeletons.

At Kampung Pelegong, my foster family cooked a scrumptious breakfast of roti canai, mata ikan sagu and keria, while dinner was beef curry, scrambled eggs, oyster mushrooms and Chinese cabbage. Because of Indonesian influences, the traditional food of Negeri Sembilan is somewhat unique from the rest of Malaysia. Kampung Pachitan, for example, is influenced by Javanese culture, evidenced by their cuisine such as rempeyek, a spicy rice cracker made with peanuts, garlic, fennel seeds and coriander seeds. At Kampung Batang Nyamor (Gunung Datuk), we cooked dodol (a toffee-like confection), and crispy rice, which was later mixed with coconut milk and palm sugar to create a yummy snack.

A dazzling fireworks display at Kampung Pelegong

EXPERIENCE LOCAL CUSTOMS

Our arrival at each kampung is marked by the music of a kompang ensemble, playing gongs and percussion. At Kampung Pelegong, besides the kompang ensemble, we also got to witness a traditional adat perpatih wedding ceremony, a unique custom because Negeri Sembilan, unlike other states in Malaysia, follow matrilineal law, wherein inheritance is passed on through the females in the community. The celebration kicks off with fireworks display and procession of the bride and groom through the village, before a traditional program of songs and dances are performed. This tradition can be traced back to the Minangkabau people of neighboring Sumatra. Mock weddings can be arranged by tourists when visiting Kamping Pelegong.

Catfish hand-fishing at Kampung Lonek

For more information about homestays found throughout Malaysia, visit www.go2homestay.com. Or you may directly contact the cooperatives at the following:

This blog post was made possible through Jom Jelajah Koperasi 2013 – Negeri Sembilan, a media tour held last October 21 to 24, 2013 in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The event was organized by Gaya Travel Magazine and Suhuranjaya Koperasi Malaysia (SKM) in celebration of Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

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Welcome to my website! I’m travel writer, photographer and online influencer Edgar Alan Zeta-Yap from the Philippines. Join me as I hike, dive, fly, eat and do pretty much anything in between across 7,641 islands and beyond. Need to reach me? Please write me an email.